OBJECTIVES: (a) Investigate the effectiveness of specific training experiences in improving the cognitive and personal-social functioning of aged Ss; (b) compare the relative effectiveness of each of four types of training programs with a "no training" experience; (c) discover whether improvement in functioning which may occur can last over an extended time period without reeforcement; (d) compare the effects of reenforcement versus no reenforcement of training on the maintenance of gains in functioning. METHODS: An analysis of variance design, single classification, will be used with a sample of volunteer aged Ss recruited from the community in an urban setting. The Ss will be formed into five groups matched for background variables. One group will receive no training and the other four groups will be divided among the following four programs: (1) General Education Experience; (2) Cognitive Skill Training and Reenforcement; (3) Physical Exercise and Activity; and (4) Transcendental Meditation. After a pre-training evaluation with a psychological battery of tests, testing will be repeated on three additional occasions, following periods of "training" and "no training".